A friend has requested another name banner – and this time all featuring Beatrix Potter characters. It’s been an absolute joy to study and, yes, copy her fine drawings around the 7 letters of a name.
Beatrix Potter is once again extremely popular with the launch of the feature film of Peter Rabbit but she has never not been popular with children, ever since her darling little tales were made into books.
But do you know anything about Beatrix? The film starring Renee Zellweger told her story – albeit in Hollywood style.
Her drawings are not just adorable but she is admired and studied by people who know that her work on botany and nature studies are excellent.
Her speciality being fungi…
“… before publishing The Tale of Peter Rabbit in 1902, the British writer and illustrator was interested in a range of scientific disciplines. The field that attracted her interest the most was mycology – the study of fungi.
For at least a decade, Potter painted hundreds of detailed, accurate images of mushrooms. She studied them under a microscope to investigate how they reproduced and wrote a paper on germinating fungal spores that was presented at the prestigious Linnean Society of London.
In recent years, this lesser-known side of Potter’s life has caused controversy. Historians, writers and scientists have interpreted her surviving letters and journal in very different ways. Some have suggested that she was a pioneering scientist whose contributions were suppressed by the patriarchal Victorian scientific establishment.
She showed her work and findings to William Thistleton-Dyer – the director of Kew – who it appears was not overly impressed . t is worth noting that although Potter was keen on studying fungi, there is no evidence she wanted to earn a living as a scientist. Her journal suggests she was motivated more by seeking something to occupy her intelligence and curiosity, make a little money and assert her independence – all at a time when most avenues for women were barred.
In that, of course, she succeeded: The Tale of Peter Rabbit alone has been translated into more than 45 languages and sold 45 million copies. More than 250 million copies of her books have been sold worldwide.
“Beatrix Potter was an intelligent woman who was bored and wanted something to do that would keep her busy and earn her a little money,” Lear said. “I don’t think she had any ambition to be a mycologist. She’s already been successful in selling some of her art work and when the research paper she wrote needed more work, she lost interest in favour of something that was more suited to what she was after.”
If you’d like to read the above in it’s full article form follow this link
Whatever the experts think, I love her drawings and stories. I have just spent the most enjoyable couple of days doing these…
So A is featuring Peter Rabbit, I decided to keep the letters uniform so I have written words from the story inside the letters – The Tale of Peter Rabbit in this one of course in a fine green felt pen and then coloured over with a green crayon.
The lovely Mrs Tiggy-Winkle for the B
Squirrel Nutkin came next….
Now for Jemima with the sandy whiskered gentleman nearby…. oh dear
Pigling Bland – how dapper
Another A and this time its The Tailor of Gloucester…
The final letter and my favourite – it’s Mr. Jeremy Fisher – I really enjoyed copying him.
Once I’m happy with the drawings I will attach them to a ribbon and they will make a nice big name banner (each drawing is A4 size). I use Uni Pin drawing pens and water soluble crayons which I did not wet.
I find the colours are more vibrant than ordinary colouring pencils.
This is not for sale.
Thanks for reading,
back next week
Rosie
